The local shop has a stack of them gathering dust in these days that only lamborghini-looking bullets with a sophisticated look seem to be selling, that I can buy cheap.

Generally speaking, what king of accuracy have you been getting with them? Most of them are flat based intelocks.

Thank you!

what caliber and weights are we talking?

They are usually more than accurate enough...

some moreso than others...

for instance, the varmint weight 22 calibers are very accurate....

Hornady flat base interlocks as about as good as it gets for most hunting.

Grab them if they're cheap! You won't regret it.

I have found the Hornady Interlock to be just as accurate as Sierras in a whole bunch of my rifles. The 100gn .257 IL has been the most consistently accurate bullet in four .25 cal rifles (.250 Savage, 2 x .257 Roberts, .25-06). Others are the .264 129gn, 7mm 139gn, .308 150gn and 165gn Interlocks. All flat bases. Hornady Flat Base Interlocks are my favourite standard cup & core bullet.

Like many will likely say, it is probably harder to find a Hornady bullet that consistently shoots poor groups than it is to find one that shoots good groups.

The 87 grain .257", 129 grain .264", 154 grain .284", and 195 grain .323" are among my favorite component bullets for medium case capacity cartridges with those bore diameters.

They have always shot very good for me. Not match grade accuracy, but really good. They have worked for me on game just fine as well....zero complaints.

chamois,

Interlocks usually shoot very well, in fact I often use them as a "starter" bullet for working up loads with more expensive bullets of the same weight and diameter. If flat-based Interlocks won't group at least decently, I know there's something wrong with the rifle that needs fixing before wasting some more expensive bullets. And if the Interlocks shoot well, and the expensive bullets don't with the same powder, then there's something wrong with the more expensive bullets.

Plus, with an Interlock load worked up, I have a great source of ammo for sighting-in and most hunting. There are few big game animals on earth so large that the right Interlock wouldn't be a good choice.

I specifically mentioned flat-based Interlocks only because some rifles don't like boattails. But have used plenty of BTSP Interlocks as well.

I have shot Interlocks for many years in several calibers. There is not anything that is consistently more accurate in about any rifle.

All of my rifles shoot them 1/2-1 moa, when I do my part.
I just sighted in a Savage .308 that I bought from Makaira. The last three, two-shot groups with 150s that I fired were from .36-.65 at 200 yards.

Hornady match ammo was not any better.

130gr FB Interlocks were the most accurate bullets I tried in my pre-64 .270.

In general, FBs have grouped better for me.

The only caution I would have is that Hornady has discontinued some of them. So you might get a load worked up that you like and then not be able to find any more Bullets for it

This^^^

The boat tails seem to be slightly less accurate. But maybe 1/2" or so depending on many other things.

I've shot some of the best groups with Interlocks. They are also next to premium bullets as far as holding together, expansion and penetration. Love interlocks. It's tough for me to change to the latest because they've worked so well for me since about 1968 when I started shooting them.

I have used them quite extensively in my .264 WM and tried them in a .375 H&H. The 140g .264 consistently shot an inch or less, but the 270g .375s did no better than 3". Others have had better results with the .375s. My rifle just didn't like them.

I don't think they were Interlocks until about 1977.

They are not finicky about seating depth and don't need the endless tweaking that the racier looking bullets sometimes need. Usually I just load them up with whatever setting I have on the bullet seating die and they are good to go.

I have tested them side by side with comparable weight Nosler Partitions and was surprised to see how well they did in comparison. Almost as much penetration with larger frontal areas and good weight retention. The Noslers would keep a little more weight and dig a little deeper usually.

I`ll go and grab them I think :)´

I have seen very few questions raise suchan unanimous reply

Thank you!

I can only speak to the 117gr .257, 139gr 7MM and the 150gr .308 but they all have killed untold truck loads of game for my family. Accuracy has never been an issue and killing power is superb. powdr

117grn .257, along with 165grn, 180grn, 190 grn .308 have been outstanding for me.

Great bullets and accurate and some, like their 100gr Flat Base kill and hold together even at 257 Weatherby velocities. That said, I had one come almost unglued on an impala at 80 yards shot on point of shoulder. Yes the animal dropped like a sack, BUT a 180gr bullet should have punched through a diminutive impala. Lesson learned is what if that would have been say, an eland shot in the same spot. From then on, my criteria is 2700 fps & below. J

I was just going to try the .338 200 Interlock. Appears they don't make them anymore.

This mirrors my thoughts on the subject.

Interlocks are where I start when I'm trying to 'learn' a rifle.

FWIW, they're cup and cores. I've seen 270 and 300 Interlocks in the 375 come apart as well. They aren't as universal as stuff costing twice as much, but they do shoot very well, and they work quite well most of the time.

My question had to do with their accuracy potential.

I am not worried about their performance, which I consider isnjust a matter of matching bullet weigh and velocity, to the animal you are after.

I went back to my 1967/1968 Hornady reloading manual. Page 32 top of the page it stars that the hunting bullets have a cannelure to help retain the core.
Mathman may be right 1977 may be the date. I was wrong!

I don't think I have any of those old Hornady bullets left. My first manuals were Lyman and Speer. The Lyman manual was great the Speer manual was hot.


Those old bullets looked a lot like the Interlocks. Back in those days (60's) I experimented with a lot of different bullets.

Hornady bullets have very accurate for me in several calibers. I have shot more Hornady bullets than all other brands combined. The only caliber where I reach for something other than a Hornady is the .243 and there I load the Nosler 95 BT. I used to shoot Hornady 100 grain flat base bullets, but they are discontinued so the Nosler takes its place.

They are one of the best cheap bullets you can shoot big game with! I had a 7mm Weatherby Mag in a Weatherby MK V that I bought because the guy that had it said it didn't shoot to well, it also came with 10 boxes of ammo 139 gr Hornaday SP! All I did to that rifle was to make sure the floor screws were tight and the scope mounts tight! A long story short, I got good groups around 1.25 inches at 200 yards! That rifle shot very well with that load and the other loads I fed it!

This .........

Pretty much the same way I see it..

Internet wisdom (oxymoron there) suggests that secant ogives, such as Hornaday have, are more critical seating depth and generally do not shoot as well away from the lands. Have those that use Hornadays regularly found this to be the case?

Thanks.

IME, not especially.

I use Hornady Spire Points almost exclusively across multiple calibers and have often found the best accuracy at .030" or .040" off the lands. I don't know if that qualifies as being a long way off the lands, but I once had a .243 that was so worn a Hornady 100 gr. SP seated to touch the lands wasn't even inside the case. They still shot sub-MOA groups seated some couple of tenths off the lands. The two Remington M700 .308's I've owned had very long throats. Seating the Hornady 150 SP to fit in the magazine left them some .070" off the lands but even seated that far back they were still very accurate.

Can't say that the Spire Points are less critical about seating distance than others because I've never used other brands all that much, just that in the rifles I've used kissing the lands wasn't critical to best accuracy.

I always run mine .020" off the lands... They shoot excellent and consistent.. Nuff said...

I like Interlocks for the very reason that you can get decent accuracy without all the fiddling that some seem to need.

Interlocks, one of the most consistently accurate topics on the 'Fire.

The Spire Point Interlock is also where I start when accuracy testing. I like the cannelure, something the also-accurate Sierras don't offer. They have been some of the most consistently accurate bullets in several rifles. They are fine hunting bullets at reasonable impact velocities.

My only gripe is that now Hornady is doing away with some of them. Like the 100 grain .257...really??

What is your guidelines for accuracy? They shoot like match bullets for me-but I am a hunter and not a paper puncher. I have shot lots of sub-half-moa groups with them over the years.

Would you mind sharing the load data? I am loading for two Savage 10PC rifles in .308. Mine loves 44.0gr of IMR-4064, but my son's doesn't like that or anything to do with IMR-4064 and I'm still looking for suggestions.

Thanks,

Ed

In .308, I load 44gr RL15 behind 165-168gr bullets, 46gr behind 150s. Almost all my hunting rifles get Hornady bullets. I may or may not give up .2-.3" in 100yd. groups but, so what. Deer can't tell the difference.

I have never seen an Interlock that any of my rifles didn't like.... They are great bullets for the money.

The only spire point I have much experience with is the 139 fb in 2 different 7-08s. They're accurate in both guns and have killed the deer and hogs I've shot quickly. I also shot several hogs with the 140 Accubond and couldn't tell a nickle's worth of difference between the 2. That, by the way, was meant as a compliment.

I started reloading in the late 60's to get more shots per dollar than factory fodder.

Small town and a small LGS that did not order or keep all in stock. It may be Speer one time, Sierra and Hornady later.

At first I loaded for 222, 22-250, 270 and 308. I bagged lots of deer and felt Hornady and Sierra gave good results with the 270, 308 and Speer gave more accuracy in the little ones.

Later in life I started using hot core and what the writers were pushing, Nosler partitions. I did not see deer dying any differently. By then I was also loading and shooting a lot of 264 mag, 7 Rem Mag, 300 Win and WBY, 338 Win and 340 WBY along with the 375 H&H.

I was not a bench rest guy but did lots of shooting from the bench. At some point I felt the premium bullets did not offer a benefit for non dangerous game and pretty much went back to Hornady and Sierra.

I also use Win silvertip and REM core lokt in 270, both 130 grain. I have a lifetime of 270 WBY velocity loads in 130 grain and I'd have to check buy I think they may be Speer. I bought lots of ammo from an LGS that dropped reloading. If not pennies on the dollar it may have been a dime on the dollar prices wise. And I should have bought more pistol ammo.

I have a life time of deer hunting with the Nosler Partition in 150 gr in 270 but I feel a 150 is not needed for a whitetail or mule deer.

Hornady always did and still does give me excellent accuracy. If I had a large wood shotshell box full of Hornady in various calibers I would not feel slighted. And interlock would be the exact one I want.

Base bullets in Weatherby factory ammo, all of the which are seated way off the rifling, would indicate it's not an issue

In .284 I've had better accuracy with the 139 than the 154. In .308 better accuracy with the 180 than the 165.

I seat mine 30 thou off the lands. To tell the truth, I've never really experimented with adjusting seating depth.

Day in day out the Hornady Interlock Spire points are excellent bullets, both accuracy and performance on game wise...

tcp,

I suspect the reason Hornady Spire Points aren't particularly sensitive to seating depth is the transition from the ogive to the shank of the bullet is gently curved, rather than the abrupt transition found in some secant-ogive bullets.

Thank you M.D. I have not used Hornady bullets to any significant amount, but have a rifle currently not shooting Sierras as well as I had hoped. Might as well try a different color box.

Hornaday makes a 165 grain .30 cal in both a flat base and boat tail, any particular preference for one vs.the other?

Thanks.

51 grains of CFE223 and Hornady 150 Flat base. I have no idea how far off the lands they are and don't care for that matter. I just seat them a little over book length and they have never failed to shoot. This load is consistently half to one minute or so in the Savage and a Ruger American. I chron'd the Savage a little bit ago and it averaged 2899fps, with a 15 fps sd. The RA is about 2934fps average.

My rifles seem to like the 150 better than the 165, but both are good shooters. I use Re15 and Varget with the 165.

I load the 139s in a 7 mag and they shoot even better than the .308s.